One in five women has to put their lives on hold during their periods because of heavy bleeding. The general term for this is “Abnormal Uterine Bleeding (AUB),” meaning periods that are too heavy or that go longer than the typical seven day cycle. It commonly occurs in women over 35 as hormone levels shift. AUB can be caused by:
· Hormonal imbalances
· Structural abnormalities in the uterus
· Medical conditions

Hormonal Imbalances
Lab testing is useful and may or may not confirm that hormone levels are out of balance. However, the correct lab test should be done. To assist you in avoiding the confusion about which lab test should be done, let’s look at the differences. Blood or Serum testing is preferred by the medical community. Saliva is preferred by Alternative Healthcare providers. Which is the most accurate? The answer is they both are accurate but each looks at different things. The most important aspect of hormone testing is to look at the ratios to monitor the feedback loops. Many healthcare providers look at individual hormone levels to determine too little or too much and disregard the hormone balance controlled by feedback loops, which can only be identified by looking at hormone ratios.

Blood/Serum Testing
This testing measures all hormones including synthetic hormones and “protein bound hormones”, which are unusable by your body until converted into free fractioned hormones. If you are using a topical cream for hormone replacement, this test is useless because it does not measure “free-fractioned hormones”. Topical Hormone replacement creams contain hormones that must be free-fractioned to be able to pass through your skin. If, however, the blood/serum test is a “free-fractionated test” it does measure free fractioned hormones just as Salivary testing does. The down side is that it is ten times more expensive so it is unlikely it would be done.

Saliva Testing
Studies have shown that Saliva and “Free Fractioned Blood/Serum” testing will produce the same results. The advantage is that Saliva Testing is relatively inexpensive and easily measures the naturally occurring rhythms of hormones produced by your body. Saliva testing only measures free-fractioned hormones and will not report synthetic or protein bound hormones. This is the ideal test for testing the effectiveness of hormone creams.

Functional Healthcare testing looks at the mechanisms that control hormone function. Hormone ratios are used to determine if the feedback loop maintaining proper hormone levels in your body are correct. Other factors may also be involved in altering hormone feedback loops. For example: you may be insulin resistant which will alter your hormones changing the feedback loops that control the monthly cycle.

Structural Abnormalities in the Uterus 
Anytime you see a picture of the uterus it is free standing without any visible means of support. This artistic omission gives the impression that no means of support is necessary to keep the uterus in place within your pelvis. Ask your healthcare provider if the uterus has any ligament connected to your pelvis and you will probably get a blank stare. Chiropractors love to talk about the bones of the hips being out of place but will never mention the ligaments suspending your uterus from your pelvis.

Sacro Occipital Technique recognizes the nine ligaments that suspend the uterus in your pelvis are often the cause of structural abnormalities in the uterus. Misalignment of your pelvis is transferred to the uterus through the ligaments. This impairs the uterus, causing a buildup of lining resulting in AUB, endometriosis, infertility, etc. 

This misalignment causes stagnation and impaired blood supply to the uterus. Over time, adhesions will develop within the pelvis causing further restriction in the uterus and other organs in the pelvis such as the bladder and colon. Not all of the lining leaves during menstrual periods allowing the lining of the uterus to build up due to the stagnation and improper circulation, resulting in endometriosis, fibroids and infertility. The innermost lining is the oldest and farthest away from a good blood supply. The innermost lining being furthest away from the blood supply begins deteriorating as it ages. The deteriorated lining will prevent implantation of the egg by making the blood supply inaccessible, which is necessary to maintain the pregnancy. As the fetus grows, demands for blood supply grow and if the demands are not met or the deteriorating lining breaks away, can result in a miscarriage. As the innermost lining ages, it deteriorates, sloughing off, creating breakthrough bleeding or clots and bad cramping during menstruation as the uterus contracts to push clots through the cervix. Many women experience severe pain with ovulation due to this. As the pelvis twists asymmetrically, some women experience this pain every other month because adhesions are built up on one side more than the other. As the follicle forms on the ovary, this creates tension into the adhesion resulting in pain in the abdomen or referred pain in the lower back.

Medical Conditions
Medical conditions do exist and can be very serious. Abnormal bleeding should be checked out by proper healthcare providers. However, you should be aware of “worst comes first” thinking. Your condition began initially as a simple structural alteration of the uterus and other structures in the body. Altered structure causes altered function. This altered the manner in which the uterus, or any organ for that matter, functions in your body, resulting in your current condition. Until normal structure is returned, the uterus will continue to be a problem. How much alteration does it take? Allow me to use this example: Have you ever had a rock in your shoe causing a lot of pain? You take off your shoe, knowing you would find a sharp jagged boulder inflicting pain on you, only to find a tiny pebble. How could that tiny pebble cause that much pain? That slight of an alteration in your body can cause major problems throughout your body. 

What can be done?
The appropriate treatment of endometriosis/AUB is much more complex than using surgery or hormone replacement. While surgery may eliminate the source of the bleeding, it will not correct the cause of the problem. Hormone replacement therapy shifts hormone ratios in a direction that recent studies have shown increases the risk of cancer. Many factors and systems are involved in the patterns associated with these conditions. These factors include: liver detoxification, estrogen metabolism, thyroid and gut function, insulin sensitivity, adrenal function, testosterone synthesis, enzymatic activity associated with hormone function and the feedback loops involved with the pituitary and hypothalamus. Pelvic alignment, non-invasive ligament release and balancing hormone feedback loops when used in combination, are often successful with conditions such as endometriosis, infertility, cramping etc. Wellness Alternatives can be of assistance to you in determining the proper course of action for you. Call now to schedule your appointment.

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